Tom Leppert

Is It Finally Curtains for the Trinity River Project?

Liveblogging Today's Council Meeting During Which It'll Vote on FY2010-11 Budget

Friendship-West's Dr. Frederick Haynes, a longtime Leppert ally, spoke in favor of a tax hike: "We cannot ride first class without paying for it."​Hey y'all. I rode the elevator up to City Council Chambers this morning with Carolyn Davis, who is doing this whole Jackie O thing in a fun-collared ... More >>

Doing the Math After Today's Tax Rate Vote

City of Dallas Facebook pageFrom yesterday's Pavaho Pump Station groundbreaking, though feel free to write your own caption​Didn't even get my print-edition column out the door this week before I got a major correction, and this one from a person who would know -- city council member Angela Hunt. ... More >>

Why's Leppert So Pissed Off at the Corps of Engineers? Because He Can't Handle the Truth.

​O.K., I've been laughing up my sleeve over the mayor's whining remarks last week, complaining that certain unnamed "federal partners" aren't being very nice to him. Hanging around City hall last week for various dumb events, I was able to chat up a couple of people who are keeping quite close ta ... More >>

Mayor Leppert Won't Say What Other Federal Agencies He Lashed Out Against Last Week; Suhm Calls Criticism "Not Very Harsh"

Sam MertenMayor Leppert giving his State of the City address last week.​As we mentioned last week, Mayor Tom Leppert spiced up his State of the City address with, among other things, some harsh comments directed toward the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Not only did he claim the corps is "not a ... More >>

Mayor Tom Leppert's Last Ditch Effort to Pick Off One City Council Member Before Wednesday's Big Budget Vote

​While Mayor Tom Leppert has dismissed headlines surrounding the budget as "perpetuated unfortunately by politics," we pointed out that he's been sending out campaign e-mails and mailers in a desperate effort to secure enough votes among his colleagues to prevent a tax hike. Despite his campai ... More >>

The Biggest Tax from City Council is On Our Patience.

Mayor Leppert Uses State of City Speech to Get Ahead of DPD's Release of Dash-Cam Beating

Sam MertenMayor Leppert starts to tear up today while talking about the shocking dash-cam video about to be released.​In advance of the 3 p.m. press conference at Dallas Police Department headquarters during which the dash-cam video that Mayor Pro Tem Dwaine Caraway doesn't want you to see wil ... More >>

Mayor Blasts Feds For "Not Being Accountable to the Citizens of Dallas" Regarding Trinity

Photos by Sam Merten​Just two days after suffering the worst defeat of his short political career, Mayor Tom Leppert offered something different from his typical canned State of the City address that we've grown accustomed to hearing around this time of year. "I am very optimistic about the s ... More >>

Liveblogging This Morning's Packed, Star-Studded Budget Workshop at City Hall

​Bon matin, Mes Amis de le Parc Qui Est Unfair. Overflow crowd this morning at the City Council Budget Meeting in 6ES, and Tom Leppert, pin-striped as ever, has just told the packed house to sit tight while they figure out what to do with everyone. Atmosphere is stuffy and contentious -- this is t ... More >>

Mayor Tom Leppert and Friends Lobby for Dallas Convention Center As World Cup HQ

Photos by Patrick MichelsFIFA delegates wrap up their tour of the Dallas Convention Center this morning, before hopping a bus to see Cowboys Stadium.​ Along with Mayor Tom Leppert and our good friends at Telemundo, we got up early this morning and rode over to the Dallas Convention Center, where ... More >>

Leppert on Tax Hike: "I Don't Want it Coming on the Shoulders of the People Who Live Here."

Sam Merten​While I had Mayor Tom Leppert on the phone Monday evening, to discuss the walkout by six council members before the tax-rate hike briefing even got going, we talked for a few minuts about his opposition to a property tax hike. He acknowledged: Yes, some council members are leaning that ... More >>

The More Things Change: Yesterday's Council Walkout Brings Back Fond (?) Memories

​Fine print alert! When Mayor Tom Leppert tells you that yesterday's agenda item vote on the city tax rate didn't mean anything, he's got his hand deep in your pocket. It may be fine print, but ask Leppert why the vote was required by state law if it didn't mean anything. Yesterday's council walko ... More >>

Fitness Model: Oncor Pledges the First Million to Mayor's Youth Fitness Initiative

Photos by Patrick MichelsMayor Tom Leppert accepted a million bucks from Oncor to launch the Mayor's Youth Fitness Initiative today, which, first off, will help keep rec centers open.Once they hung the posters for this afternoon's big announcement at City Hall, the suspense was pretty well killed. M ... More >>

Angela "Swing Vote" Hunt Gives Us a Hint of What to Expect at Tomorrow's Love Field Airport Concessions Shindig

Angela Hunt's flickrWill this be the scene after tomorrow's council briefing?​Tomorrow, finally, the city council will be briefed once again on the concession contracts at Dallas Love Field Airport that has the council is split along racial lines. Mayor Tom Leppert failed to mention the racial ... More >>

Consultant Says Part of New Love Field Concessions Proposal "Just Doesn't Make Sense" and Extending Contracts is "Fairly Common"

Airport consultant Pat Gleason​As Mayor Tom Leppert told DMN'er Rudy Bush last night, there will be at least four options for the city council to evaluate at Wednesday's briefing about the Dallas Love Field Airport concession contracts, two of which contain the mayor's input. We asked Leppert's ch ... More >>

Mayor Leppert Wants That Woodall Rodgers Billboard Adiosed. Like, Yesterday.

Patrick MichelsSooner or later, this sucker's gonna be gone. Mayor Tom'll see to it himself.​One week ago today we introduced you to the latest downtown Dallas attraction -- that Clear Channel billboard that damn near touches the Woodall Rodgers exit that dumps into northbound Stemmons. And while ... More >>

Belo Corp. Board Member, Convention Center Hotel Folks and Jerry Jones Top List of Mayor Tom Leppert's Fund-Raising Pals

Patrick MichelsThat hotel victory is the gift that keeps on giving.​While his political future remains unclear, Mayor Tom Leppert raised a combined $243,000 in donations in the first half of this year, according to campaign finance reports filed yesterday. Meanwhile, his officeholder account a ... More >>

Minority Council Members Say Leppert "Mischaracterized" Their Support of Love Field Concession Contracts Delay in Campaign E-Mail

Sam MertenThe seven who claim the mayor needs to be clear when talking about their stance on the Love Field concession contracts (from left to right): Delia Jasso, Dwaine Caraway, Pauline Medrano, Carolyn Davis, Tennell Atkins, Vonciel Hill and Steve Salazar​On Monday, we told you about an e-m ... More >>

Mayor Thanks Whole Council (?) For Working Hard to Open Up Love Field Concession Contracts For Bids in Latest Campaign E-Mail

Havin' an e-blast with Mayor Tom Leppert's odd thank-you note to the council today​After Mayor Tom Leppert quashed public comments and instructed city staff to bring more options to the city council in August regarding the Dallas Love Field Airport concession contracts, Schutze declared victo ... More >>

Liveblogging Today's City Council Meeting, That Is, At Least Until They're Done Talkin' About the Interesting Stuff

Sam MertenCity Manager Mary Suhm and Mayor Tom Leppert early this morning at today's city council meeting.​With my trusty laptop in hand, I prepared to liveblog the heck outta today's city council meeting -- the last one before the council leaves for its July recess and then returns to tackle ... More >>

At City Hall, Democracy Had Nothing To Do With Deferring Love Field Concessions Vote

​An extremely important thing happened at the city council meeting this morning. Nothing happened. I can't tell you how big that is. Angela Hunt won. Mayor Tom Leppert told a packed house that the city council had agreed informally not to vote on the contentious Love Field concessions issue, direc ... More >>

Minority Council Members Blast Mayor For Not Supporting Love Field Contract Extensions

Photos by Sam Merten"Enough is truly enough," said Mayor Pro Tem Dwaine Caraway at today's press conference before explaining why he and Mayor Tom Leppert are on opposite sides.​The Dallas City Council's seven minority council members launched a counterattack this afternoon against Mayor Tom L ... More >>

Concession Giant Calls Leftovers at Love Field "Very Desirable"; Magazine CEO Says Extending Contracts "Is Not an Unusual Practice"

Patrick MichelsMayor Leppert has a letter from a major company claiming they won't bid on the Love Field concessions leftovers 'cause it ain't worth their time. But another big-time company calls that same space "very desirable."​One of the arguments presented by Mayor Tom Leppert in his quest ... More >>

At the Dallas Zoo, Leppert Fund Raises for Educational Program. And, Celebrates Birthday.

Patrick MichelsOn his birthday, Mayor Tom Leppert gets to meet Ernie, an American alligator, at the Dallas Zoo​Even if he'd secretly been hoping for a pony on his birthday, Mayor Tom Leppert was all smiles this morning at the Dallas Zoo, where the formalities of a press conference quickly gave ... More >>

The Dallas City Council Becomes the First to Tag Calatrava's Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge

Photos by Patrick MichelsMayor Tom Leppert joined the City Council in signing the inside of the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge's center arch.​We've been watching from Unfair Park HQ as pieces of the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge have been lifted into place, and earlier today Mayor Tom Leppert and the rest ... More >>

Jenny, Gypsy and Mayor Tom Leppert Unveil Dallas Zoo's New Giants of the Savanna

Photos by Patrick MichelsMayor Tom Leppert headed out to the Dallas Zoo this morning to soak up some sun, watch the elephants, and preside over the "best ribbon-cutting you've ever seen."​In a sweltering outdoor ceremony that would have slowed down a lesser showman, Mayor Tom Leppert reveled in hi ... More >>

Are Vonciel Hill and Carolyn Davis About to Call Out the Mayor? (Update: Apparently Not.)

Sam MertenDMN'er Rudy Bush thought I was taking a picture of him walking into the meeting, but I assured him I was merely capturing City Manager Mary Suhm with a smile on her face, which he agreed is rare these days given the city's $130 million budget shortfall.​The second meeting of the city ... More >>

When It Comes to Doing Deals in Dallas, Leppert Must Remember That History Never Forgets

Patrick Michels​For most people, Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert's campaign to open up the bidding process for concessions at the city airport must seem open and shut. He wants the bidding to be open. But the door is shut because the concessions are in the hands of politically connected people. For insid ... More >>

Mayor Leppert Just Stopped Checking His E-Mail to Chime In on the Love Field Concessions

Sam MertenMayor Leppert, five minutes into the presentation.​Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Pauline Medrano began this afternoon's Love Field Concession Committee meeting by letting folks know why the committee was formed -- to clear up "perception issues reported by the newspaper" -- and what the groun ... More >>

Mayor Leppert's Comments on Christian Radio Show Add to Speculation of Senatorial Run

Sam MertenWe'll stop reading into Leppert's comments when he stops giving us good reasons to.​Those not listening to KVTT-1110 AM yesterday around 2:30 p.m. missed Mayor Tom Leppert's appearance on Point of View, a nationally syndicated Christian conservative talk show based in Dallas. We were ... More >>

So, No Solar-Powered Water Taxis, Then? But ... But ... But We Were Promised!

Mayor Tom Leppert, seen here during the Trinity River toll road referendum​So tomorrow, on some page of The Dallas Morning News (I assume Page One), Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert will concede that the Trinity River Project has hit the wall. Wall, wall, wall. A story posted on The News's Web site this ... More >>

"Public Safety and Flood Control Always Come First," Except When They Don't

​Earlier this morning, those among Mayor Tom Leppert's nearly 2,000 friends on Facebook were treated to a link to the city's Web site where they could find an official response to a recent story in The Dallas Morning News about the Trinity River Corridor Project. Turns out the statement is an ... More >>

Mayor Leppert's Contributions Dry Up and Then His Big Fund-Raiser Becomes a Charity Event -- What Gives?

Mayor Leppert at last year's "Giraffes, Monkeys and Lepperts" fund-raiser.​For the past two years, Mayor Tom Leppert's annual "Giraffes, Monkeys and Lepperts" event at the Dallas Zoo has served as a birthday bash for the mayor and fund-raiser for Friends of Tom Leppert, a committee formed to p ... More >>

Mayor Tom Leppert To Texas Tribune: Education is City's "Achilles' Heel"

Patrick Michels​As a Friend of Unfair Park points out below, Mayor Tom Leppert speaks today to Emily Ramshaw, the former Morning News-er, now with the Texas Tribune. It's only a brief audio interview -- a little shorter than nine minutes -- and he doesn't say anything particularly shocking: Cr ... More >>

Meanwhile, Down at the Convention Center Hotel Construction Site ...

Someone doesn't look like they want to be in this photo with the mayor, the U.S. treasurer and some council members.​Like I said, we're a wee bit shorthanded at the moment, and I couldn't find anyone willing to spend a damp afternoon at the Omni construction site with Mayor Tom Leppert and U.S. Tr ... More >>

What Did The Mayor Mean When He Called Out the School District This Morning?

Megan FeldmanMayor Tom Leppert, DISD trustee Edwin Flores and superintendent Michael Hinojosa at SMU in July​This morning, during a speech at a Big Brothers Big Sisters benefit breakfast, Mayor Tom Leppert announced a few possible corporate relocations to Dallas -- among them, he said, a Fortune 2 ... More >>

Fine, Just Don't Go Planning Any Victory Parades Just Yet, OK, Mister Mayor?

Patrick Michels​Chris Heinbaugh, Mayor Tom Leppert's chief of staff, sends word this morning that Leppert and Philadelphia Mayor Michael A. Nutter (awesome) have made a bet on Saturday night's Cowboys-Eagles game. But, blessedly, they've dispensed with the wackiness (no jerseys worn to council mee ... More >>

Top 10 Mayor Tom Photos of '09

Mayor Tom Leppert isn't an easy interview to snag these days. At least, not for us here at the Observer. But that doesn't stop us from catching a glimpse of the man whenever we get the chance, and, of course, capturing snapshots along the way. Yup, we've developed quite a fondness for the unique and ... More >>

Love 'em or Leave 'em, Part 2: Mayor Has Another List of Vacant Downtown Buildings

View Larger MapThis time, there was no spectacle on a downtown sidewalk, no star-studded press conference in the rain, only a sunrise e-mail from Mayor Tom Leppert's chief of staff, Chris Heinbaugh. Fourteen months after Mayor Tom Leppert began his crackdown on vacant downtown Dallas buildings, he h ... More >>

Mayor Leppert Says Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge "Will Be Finished as Promised" As Corps of Engineers OKs Construction on Approaches

Photos by Sam MertenKevin Craig of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mayor Tom Leppert and council member Dave Neumann this afternoon at the Trinity Trust.​Supporters of the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge breathed a collective sigh of relief this afternoon at the Trinity Trust as Mayor Tom Leppert ... More >>

Mayor Leppert to Put on Boots, Then Scoot for Dallas County GOP Fundraiser on Thursday

Patrick Michels​I hate that I have plans for Thursday. I'd much rather be at Eddie Deen's, where the Greater Dallas Republicans have a fundraiser scheduled: "Boot Scootin' With Mayor Tom Leppert." Or, maybe, "Boot Scootin' With Mayor Tom Leppert ... Through the Holidays." Hard to say just what the ... More >>

Leppert: Asian Trip "Will Translate into Economic Investment, More Jobs in Dallas"

Chris Heinbaugh/Office of the MayorPretty sure the woman at the far right is Linda Kao, the SMU Cox School of Business Assistant Dean of Global Programs and daughter of Buck Kao. Which reminds me: Royal China for dinner.​Mayor Tom Leppert and council member Ron Natinsky are wrapping up their trade ... More >>

Catching Up With Mayor Leppert in Asia If Only Because We Miss Him When He's Gone

All photos courtesy of the Office of the MayorLeppert and the trade delegation make a stop during their trip to Daedeok Innopolis (Hmm ... seems familiar)From the looks of the photos sent along by Mayor Tom Leppert's chief of staff, Chris Heinbaugh, it appears as though Leppert and the other 21 memb ... More >>

Don't Worry. Mayor Leppert's No-Show at Kunkle's Goodbye Wasn't a Slight. Just Turns Out He Had Somewhere Else to Be. Or Not.

flickr member: Angela HuntHeinbaugh and Leppert at the Death StarSomething was missing from Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle's retirement press conference this morning. OK, maybe not something so much as someone. More than a hundred folks found their way to DPD headquarters this morning to hear Kunk ... More >>

If You Think Ethics Reform at City Hall Was All Mayor Tom's Idea, Pass That Pipe, Willya?

Patrick Michels​In an editorial today The Dallas Morning News gives all the credit for better ethics at City Hall to Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert because, "In the end, Tom Leppert didn't blink." They must have sent a greenhorn over to cover the city council's straw vote on ethics reform last week. An ... More >>

After Spending All Day Talking Ethics Reform, City Council Punts the Whole Shebang and Wraps It Up With a Freakin' Straw Vote

​As the Dallas City Council reached the end of its painfully long discussion about the proposed ethics reform, Dave Neumann said, "It was productive for the council to go through this briefing, but that's OK." Yup, the council began its agenda meeting this morning chatting about fine points o ... More >>

The Waters Are Murky as Dallas City Council Seeks Clarity Before Ethics Reform Vote

Sam MertenCouncil member Carolyn Davis talks to zoning lawyer Kirk Williams as Willie Cothrum (right) listens.If nothing else, the city council's hastily planned ethics reform briefing early this morning showed that this group is capable of a spirited debate. For the most part, Mayor Tom Leppert has ... More >>

Before She's Required to Disclose Her Lobbying Efforts, We Take a Look-See at What Carol Reed's Banked From Mayor Leppert

Mark GrahamSure, Woodlief's Allyn Media has brought in about seven times the amount Reed has from Tom Leppert-related campaigns, but Reed remains the queen of consulting.As the city council continues to discuss ethics reform in the aftermath of 23 guilty verdicts in the Dallas City Hall corruption t ... More >>

Ladies and Gentlemen, Dallas's AT&T Performing Arts Center is Open for Business

Photos by Patrick MichelsMayor Tom Leppert and council member Angela Hunt closed out Monday morning's ceremony with some thespian assistance. ​ The AT&T Performing Arts Center kicked off its grand opening week with a dedication ceremony this morning that was long on speeches about just what it ... More >>